Hypocrisy Arises In Delray Election

October 21, 2005|Jordan Serlin BOCA RATON

It sickens me that so much back-door dealing is taking place in the Delray Beach City Commission race, limiting the true choice for voters.

As president of a local company, and as a past board of trustees member of the Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce, I view the future of Delray as critical for the economic growth and stability of all of the surrounding communities.

Many of my employees live in Delray and I have strong personal and grave concerns about the ability of Delray to maintain its growth without implosion. Remember, it was not that long ago when most Delray storefronts were vacant, and the entire downtown was desolate. Despite statements to the contrary, it was not the commission that turned the town around. It was a group of savvy entrepreneurs who were able to revitalize the area, despite actually receiving massive push-back from the very commission that now attempts to take all the credit for Delray's success.

Let's also understand that the duties of the commission are to serve the needs of the population. Delray is skewing rapidly to a below-40 demographic. Who is representing these new young professionals on the commission?

Mayor Jeff Perlman made some interesting comments in the article about how the Loeb campaign is attempting to "buy a seat" on the commission. To me this is a totally hypocritical statement, as he also said, "This is a place where there is a grooming system, there is a training ground where we look to develop people."

So, if I were to run for a commission seat, I would have to be "groomed" by the mayor and other people currently on the commission? Isn't this simply "buying a seat" through another method? Isn't this severely limiting the choice to the Delray voting population? Isn't this simply un-American?

Whether or not you agree with Mr. Loeb or his platform, his candidacy is already providing an extremely valuable service to the citizens of Delray. He has once again highlighted the hypocrisy that enshrouds the entrenched Delray political establishment.

It is refreshing to see a candidate like Loeb who seems more genuinely interested in serving the community than being beholden to special interests, or playing up to the admittedly self-serving current political establishment.